20 Slides of 20 Web Sites for 20 seconds each

Last night I presented my entire web design portfolio to a group of web design and developers in Hudson, Massachusetts. (NEWDA) I wasn't prepared to speak, thinking that these were to be background images while we chatted and networked. But, I was happy to talk about my work because I'm passionate about it.

My career has spanned 30 years of incredible change in the graphic design industry; the web design being a culmination of only the last 10 years. From drawing in India ink for illustrative map panels at Logan International Airport to designing diagrams of the immune system on one of the first Macs and finally to web design on a laptop...

My web work takes me on many journeys. I've worked with lawyers, therapists, artists, museums, playwrights and authors, accountants and caterers to name more than a few!

If you know anyone who wants to update their site or needs a new site, have them give me a ring. I'm always ready for the next journey.

Local Font Company MyFonts Publishes Book

MyFonts, of Marlborough Massachusetts, just published a book based on font designer interviews from their online newsletter, Creative Characters. Included in the newsletters (published since July 2007) and book are examples of the font types from such popular designers as Laura Worthington, Hannes Von Dohren and Marcus Sterz. Other Interviewees include David Berlow, Jim Parkinson, Cyrus Highsmith, Ray Larabie, Nick Shinn, Rian Hughes, Alejandro Paul, Dino dos Santos, Veronika Burian, Ronna Penner, Gert Wiescher, Hubert Jocham, P22, Underware and Jos Buivenga.

The September issue of the newsletter features Stuart Sandler, who co-directs no less than five foundries: Font Diner, Sideshow, Breaking the Norm, Tart Workshop and Mister Retro. "He is enamored with the lettering and typefaces of the 1920s through the 1960s, a period when letter-making was a very different craft indeed."

The book, available from Amazon, is only $23, but you can access the interviews at the MyFonts online archive. Enjoy!

Newfangled's Message: Simple Design is Good Design

Excepts from a source I trust. Thank you Chris Butler for another thoughtful essay. To read the full article go to the link above.

"Before you even start designing a page, keep in mind the following four principles. Remember, these are basic, underlying principles. They don't close any aesthetic doors. They provide a stable foundation upon which there is much freedom to design something as unique as it need be. But they will result in a page that is simpler and more effective than much of what we've reviewed today.

Identify Your Audience
Properly identifying your audience is the most critical step to designing an effective website. Chances are, you think your audience is bigger that it actually is. Take time before any prototyping or design is done to create user personas—realistic personality profiles that represent a significant group of your website's users. Without accurate personas, we're much more prone to making guesses or assumptions about who our prospects are, and creating content based upon that mistake.

Focus Your Content on Your Audience
Once you've correctly identified your audience, you can figure out what they need from you. Your content strategy should be informed by your personas, the opportunities you give them to connect with you, and the methods that are most effective for measuring the success of the site.

Include one or two calls to action
One or two at most. If you have more than that crowding the sidebar of a page, it's probably because you haven't thought through who the page is for and what next step makes the most sense for them.

Use Related Content Sparingly
Providing links to related content is a good thing to do. It provides opportunities for a prospect to learn more about what you do based upon the material they're already reading. But make sure that the way that related content is generated results in a few links to pages that are actually related. What you don't want is to direct a captive audience to something which will cause them to lose interest."

Waltham Museum Launches Perugi Design Site

 
The Charles River Museum of Industry and Innovation in Waltham, MA launched it's new site this week designed and developed by Perugi Design. The Word Press site enables the staff at CRMI to edit and add its own photographs and text. The many photographs on the site were culled from the museum's extensive library of historical pictures depicting the manufacturing industry in Waltham from the 1800's. Other contemporary pictures were taken by Sam Ogden and other photographers. A flash banner on the home page represents the innovation of yesterday as models for the innovators of today.

Summer is the right time!

Many of my clients scramble to get their websites updated in the Fall, when business starts heating up. But that means, web designers are starting new web sites as well as making the many small changes for various clients. I encourage all current clients to spend time this summer and send in the changes, so that you will have your site updated now. To make it more worth your while, Perugi Design will discount 10% off the hourly rate! Summer is the right time!!

How badly does your business need a Web site? - Framingham, MA - The MetroWest Daily News

How badly does your business need a Web site? - Framingham, MA - The MetroWest Daily News

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According to Discover Small Business Watch, 47 percent of consumers surveyed say they are more likely to use a small business that has a Web site.

Despite the fact that so many customers put stock in a Web site, many small businesses don’t have one with a Discover Small Business Watch survey of small business owners indicating that only 45 percent had a company Web site.

The Better Business Bureau recommends that these business owners ask themselves four questions to help decide whether building a Web site should become a top priority.

WordPress Rocks!

My last few design sites have been WordPress sites that the client can edit and maintain from any computer using a user name and password. Check out The Boston Ability Center and ReTele Communications to see the versatility and functionality of WordPress.

Some of the benefits of using WordPress as a Content Managed System.
• Easily maintained by anyone with basic computer skills.
• WordPress is open source and is free.
• Since it is so widely used, there is an enormous community of developers working on improving the software and creating extras to expand the functionality.
• Easily managed menu system.
• Blogging! Since WordPress is blogging software, blogging is built right into the site. Blogging is becoming more and more of a central component of all marketing strategies. In addition, the ‘blogging structure’ is perfect other types of information that have to be consistently updated, such as portfolios, newsletter, news, press releases and white papers.
• Plugins. Every day more and more plugins are being added. From photo galleries, to map systems, to news feeds, WordPress probably has what you’re looking for. Take a look at the plugins that are available: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins